FX to be made available to all importers starting May following planned central bank liquidity injection

Importers of all goods will soon be able to take out letters of credit: The central bank will start handing out letters of credit (LCs) to importers of non-essential goods at the start of June — including for goods already stuck at ports and new imports, a banking source told Enterprise. Banks will contact importers to ask them to apply for LCs in advance, our source added.

Why now? The Central Bank of Egypt is expected to pour USD 6 bn of the Ras El Hekma proceeds into the banking sector in, according to the IMF’s most recent country report (pdf) out last week — providing enough hard cash in the system for banks to help clear arrears and start opening up their FX allocations outside of those importing essential goods.

Releasing imports from customs is back on track: The government has cleared USD 20 bn worth of goods across the country’s ports since the beginning of 2024, a source at the Customs Authority told us.